


Stranger Things

by Primordya_Forever



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (IDW Comics)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Smut, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-25
Updated: 2017-07-25
Packaged: 2018-12-06 15:54:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 19,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11603898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Primordya_Forever/pseuds/Primordya_Forever
Summary: Seeing is believing, and nothing is as it seems.Having finally achieved the happiness and sense of normalcy that they so long believed to be unattainable, the turtles are living the dream as they continue to protect New York from the Foot, and all unnatural threats that appear. Can they hold onto it though, or will the fabric of their new lives be torn asunder?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> All OCs belong to me. All canon characters belong to Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, and IDW respectively. Also, please note that while this story predominantly takes place in the world of the IDW comic books, there will also be some nods to other pieces of TMNT lore as well.

Shifting from his plastron and onto his side as he slept, Donatello automatically reached for Dahlia...only to find her side of the bed empty. Frowning in his sleep, Donnie grumbled incoherently while slowly opening his eyes halfway only to then stare blearily at the vacant space. As he gradually became more awake, he raised himself up onto one of his elbows and slowly panned his blurred vision around the large room he and Dahlia shared.

He saw no trace of her.

“Dahlia?” he called out in a groggy voice as he shifted onto his other side so he could reach for his glasses. Once he had donned his spectacles, and his vision became clear, Donnie threw the covers off and slipped from the large bed. “Kimagure?” he called again, this time using his pet name for her. The Japanese word for “whimsy”, Donnie had affectionately bestowed it upon Dahlia after she had playfully accused him of lacking whimsy in his life. 

It was a fitting pet name. Highly intelligent and scientific though she was, Dahlia never lost her sense of naïveté. Unlike Donnie, she saw the world in varying shades of grey instead of black and white. She was ever the optimist, and was rarely without a smile. Dahlia was Donnie's whimsy...his heart…

And very much not in their bedroom.

As he did his usual zombie shuffle into the en suite bathroom to relieve himself, Donnie frowned upon not seeing his love in this room either. Where had Dahlia gone? While more of a morning person than Donnie was, Dahlia still enjoyed sleeping in when the situation allowed for it.

Muttering sleepily under his breath, Donnie rubbed the back of his neck and yawned while making his way out of the bathroom and back into the bedroom only to shuffle his way over to the door. He yawned again as he opened the door and stepped out into the hall before shuffling down the corridor towards the stairs--still only half-awake. He passed the rooms Leonardo and Raphael shared with their respective mates, and he knew by the steady sound of Raph’s snoring that his hot-headed brother was still asleep. Ever the early riser, Leo would no doubt already be up in the attic which their girls had converted into a dojo, for just as both Donnie and Raph were not morning people, Leo and Mikey were.

As he made his way slowly down the stairs, Donnie became more awake when he heard keys in the front door, and he stopped in his tracks before ducking down--staying out of sight as much as his bulk would allow. He recognized Rowena’s scent--roses mixed with antiseptic--as she entered the foyer, and once he had heard the door close, Donnie rose to his feet and smiled in greeting as he made his way down the rest of the stairs. “Long shift?” he asked of the slender ginger as she removed her heavy jacket to reveal the scrubs she still wore.

Rowena sighed and nodded while hanging her coat on a nearby hook. “Oh, yeah…” she replied before yawning widely. “But I've got the next two days off, and I plan to spend most of the time sleeping.” An ER nurse, Rowena Dashwood worked long and crazy hours, so her days off were especially precious to her. 

“There's supposed to be a blizzard today,” Donnie said after observing the flecks of snow still clinging to Rowena's hat and jacket even after she took them off and hung them.

“It was just starting to pick up steam when I got home,” Rowena replied. “Which makes me even happier that I literally don't have anywhere to be for the rest of the day.” She sighed in relief after freeing her ginger waves from their messy, but nevertheless tight knot in which they had been kept for the entirety of her shift. “My big lug upstairs?” she asked with a tired smile. “I could do with a nice cuddle before falling unconscious.”

“Yeah, Raph is still sleeping,” Donnie replied with a chuckle. “Still don't know how you can possibly sleep with that snoring of his right in your ear.”

Rowena smiled as she started for the stairs. “After seemingly endless hours of pained screams, panicked shouts, blaring sirens, and beeping heart monitors, I find Raph’s snoring to be a soothing white noise,” she replied. “In fact...I can't go to sleep without it.” She stopped with one foot on the step and turned to face the tallest of the four turtles. “Speaking of sleep, what're you doing up? You're usually not awake this early…”

“I rolled over, and your sister's side of the bed was empty,” Donnie replied matter-of-factly.

“Check the dining room,” Rowena said without a second thought--knowing her fraternal twin better than anyone. “The due date for that project at her museum internship is looming up, remember?”

“Yeah...and the dining room is her favorite workspace for stuff like that,” Donnie remarked with an absent nod before waving the redhead off as she started up the stairs once more. Crossing the wide foyer, he made his way into the dining room to then be greeted with the sight of his beloved Dahlia seated hunched over at the long table with her head resting against the surface as her right hand rested upon a very real human skull--other bones arranged on the table in the beginnings of a skeleton.

She was sound asleep.

Dahlia was working towards her Doctorates in both social and biological anthropology, so Donatello was no longer phased by the sight of his blond beloved cozying up to bones. Her back was to him, but Donnie had no trouble seeing that Dahlia’s glasses were askew; and as he drew closer, Donnie could see the small trail of drool leaking from her mouth and into a small puddle on the tablecloth as she snored softly--something that only happened when she was in a deep sleep. Donatello chuckled and gave a small, fond shake of his head. This was not the first time he had found his mate in such a position.

It was something they took turns doing, in fact.

“Kimagure…” Donnie murmured softly while rubbing Dahlia’s back. “Wake up, sweetie...you fell asleep in mid-project again…”

Dahlia snorted awake and blinked blearily before adjusting her glasses. When the skull became clear in her vision, she simply sighed and smiled. “Hello, gorgeous,” she rasped sleepily before yawning--not so much as startled from waking up face to face with a skull. Feeling a large, familiar hand rubbing her back with tender care, Dahlia turned her head to look over her shoulder and her smile grew at the sight of her turtle. “Hello, handsome,” she greeted moments before Donnie leaned down and gently kissed her lips.

“Good morning, beautiful,” Donnie murmured with a smile against Dahlia’s soft lips. “I missed you this morning,” he added before lightly nuzzling his mate’s nose. “I don't like waking up and not finding you there…” He shyly averted his eyes. “A small part of me always thinks that you're going to come to your senses and leave me…”

Dahlia tenderly brushed her fingers over her love’s green cheek. “Never going to happen,” she murmured. “I'd miss this face far too much.” She brushed her thumbs over Donnie’s lips. “I'd miss the sweet smiles and adorable frowns that I so adore.” She gazed up into her lover's warm, hazel eyes. “I'd miss your eyes…” She moved her hand and lightly traced her fingers down Donnie’s throat. “...your laugh, and the sound of your voice as it carries such wonderful conversations with me…” She pushed back her chair and stood only to find herself wrapped in Donatello’s lean but nevertheless strong arms; and she slid her arms around Donnie's neck while tilting her face up to his. “I would miss the way that you hold me...both when we're awake, and when we're asleep.” She smiled, and her cream-colored cheeks turned a soft shade of pink. “And then there's the way you make love to me…” she whispered moments before Donnie leaned down and kissed her. “No one could ever compare to you…” she murmured. “No one could ever replace you.” She smiled. “I'm yours, Donnie...from now until the day that I die.”

And she meant it.

Smiling, Donnie nuzzled Dahlia’s nose again. “Promise?” he asked with an underlying nervousness--suddenly afraid that his love would change her mind.

“So long as you don't mind being tied to an old lady like me, then I'm yours forever...you young buck,” Dahlia replied with a playful wink and an underlying purr.

“Twenty-six years old does not an old lady make,” Donnie replied while gazing deeply into Dahlia’s eyes. He could not have cared less that his love was older than him by seven years. Neither could Raph, for that matter--being involved with Rowena, Dahlia’s twin. After all, Donnie and his brothers were nineteen, and the two eldest Dashwood girls were only twenty-six. What did age matter between consenting adults?

Especially when the adults were so much in love?

“Promise?” Dahlia asked in a whisper.

“Promise, promise,” Donnie affirmed before claiming Dahlia’s lips again simply because he could--silently sealing their vows though while informal, still carried great weight. Being able to freely kiss so beautiful a woman was something one of the many things he would never take for granted. Kissing Dahlia, holding Dahlia, sleeping beside Dahlia...making love to Dahlia...they were all things that humans took for granted with their own significant others on a daily basis, but Donnie and his brothers never would. They all remembered only too well what the prospect of a life devoid of romantic love was like.

They were blessed...so incredibly blessed. Donnie still could not believe that his brothers had each found mates--that they had each found women who could see past their terrapin exterior and see the men within.

And they _were_ men.

While Donatello had been the last of his brother's to accept the reality of he and their father being reincarnated from Feudal Japanese humans, there was no way he could deny it anymore. He, as well as his three brothers, often experienced vivid images--memories--from their past lives flashing through their heads. That knowledge had not made their situations any easier. If anything, it had made things even more difficult for them to bear because all the opportunities that would have been afforded to them were suddenly ripped away when they had all been violently murdered as children while their father had been forced to watch.

While Hamato Yoshi had vowed vengeance upon Oroku Saki, no matter how many years it took, not even he had been able to predict just how he and his sons would return to the land of the living. Reincarnated as turtles and a rat...only to be mutated…

No one had seen that coming!

It had been so much easier to deny the possibility of any of it being true. Not simply because logic dictated it to be impossible, but because it was easier to accept than the truth...the cruel and impossible truth--the truth that Donnie, his father, and his brothers were now forced to walk around in mutated animal forms with decidedly human souls and memories. Leo and Splinter had resigned themselves to their fates, and Mikey--ever the optimist--valiantly tried to put a positive spin on things.

But Donatello and Raphael had not taken the news quite so easily. 

For Raph, it was a situation of the emotionally-charged turtle simply being frustrated at not being able to have what he would have had if he had lived into adulthood in his previous life. For Donnie, it had been a situation of being faced with a predicament that no amount of planning and brainpower could fix.

But then, Fate took a hand one evening. Fate had smiled upon them at long last, and now Donnie, his brothers, and his father were living above ground in an old, Manhattan mansion with four sisters--four sisters who had fallen in love with Donnie and his brothers despite the overwhelming odds.

“Hey, where’d you go?”

Donnie blinked himself out of his reverie to find Dahlia gazing up at him with her deep, blue eyes, and he smiled as his arms tightened around his mate while lifting her up. “Just counting my blessings,” he murmured before kissing Dahlia again.

“Dude...get a room, you two.”

Breaking the kiss, Donnie looked over his shoulder to find Mikey grinning as he stepped into the room to make his way towards the kitchen. “Kind of hard to do that when your lady keeps wandering off,” he retorted with a teasing wink to Dahlia only to be playfully swatted on the shoulder by her in reply.

“Blah, blah, blah, excuses, blah, blah, blah,” Mikey replied with a chuckle and a roll of his eyes while using his right hand to pantomime talking. His blue eyes landed upon the various bones on the table. “Then again, looks like you might have some competition, bro,” he teased. “What's Jack Skellington got that you don't? Might wanna take some notes.”

“ _Jane_ Skellington,” Dahlia corrected gently. “These bones once belonged to a woman.”

“It's freaky how you know that,” Mikey replied.

“It's actually quite simple,” Dahlia began with a smile.

“Maybe to you,” Mikey replied with a chuckle before clearing his throat. “I’ll turn on the coffee maker,” he announced to no one in particular. For once, Donnie was not the only one who religiously drank the stuff, so Mikey knew that a readied machine was always appreciated. “As soon as Martina gets her sexy booha in here, we’ll get to whipping up some deliciousness,” he added with a smile as thoughts of his mate filled his mind.

Mikey had been the first of his brothers to find a coveted mate, and it had been a complete accident. He and his brothers had been patrolling with Casey late one night; and as they had all been standing on a rooftop, they had happened to spy April emerging from an art gallery with none other than Martina--a fellow university student whom had befriended April after taking her up on her offer for tutoring in science. Casey revealed to Mikey and the others that Martina was majoring in Studio Art, and had no doubt attended the gallery opening for one of her classes. As a group, Mikey and the others had decided to follow the girls from above to ensure that they reached their next destination safely, and it was lucky that they had. As Martina and April made their way towards an all-night diner, they were accosted by three thugs who pulled them into an alley, and that was when Mikey and the others kept into action. 

The fight was over within moments...but it was what happened afterwards that seemed to drag on forever. Martina had been unwittingly dragged into the turtles’ world, and she was now face to face with the utterly impossible. Naturally, Martina had freaked out.

Mikey could hardly blame her.

It had taken both Casey and April to calm her down, and then a long rooftop explanation; but, in the end, the turtles had a new friend by the end of the night. Michelangelo had been drawn to Martina from the very first moment he had seen her. Her glossy black hair, full lips, mocha skin, and chocolate-brown bedroom eyes were enough to draw Mikey in; and when coupled with Martina’s curves...well, the orange-clad terrapin was tripping over himself more than usual to try and impress her.

They had started out as friends. Over the several weeks that followed, Mikey and Martina had bonded over art, video games, and cooking. They had laughed, joked, and soon Mikey found himself escorting Martina home on the nights she had a late class--jumping effortlessly over the rooftops while he carried her in his arms. Then came the night of their first kiss…

And Mikey’s life had never been the same.

For two months, Mikey and Martina had managed to keep their relationship a secret from their siblings as they explored what was growing between them. It had been incredible. The two of them would spend hours snuggling and kissing; and for those two months, it was as though the world consisted of just the two of them. Then they made love for the first time, and everything changed.

They had been lying in bed afterwards--their bodies trembling with aftershocks of pleasure as they nestled into one another--when Dahlia caught them. Entering Martina’s room with a basketful of laundry, the leggy blond had been utterly shocked at the sight that greeted her, and as she dropped the basket, both Mikey and Martina expected Dahlia to faint. They had not expected Dahlia to grab her younger sister’s lacrosse stick that had been propped against the chair by the door and then launch herself across the room at Mikey with a wordless scream and the speed of the track star she once was--truly believing her baby sister was being attacked and ravaged by a monster. Once Martina had finally succeeded in prying Dahlia off of her lover, Mikey had hidden in the adjoining bathroom while Martina talked her sister down. Once Martina had managed to explain to her sister that she was not in fact in danger, and that Mikey was not in fact something to be feared, Dahlia was more inclined to listen to them…

And listen she did.

Dahlia had listened with rapt attention and growing fascination as Mikey told her the tale of his and his family's origins. The matter of their reincarnation was what had particularly entranced her, for it was a topic frequently touched upon in her many anthropology classes. Then she surprised the terrapin yet again by requesting to meet the rest of his family. Taking a chance and a leap of faith, Mikey took the two sisters underground to the lair and introduced the eldest Dashwood sister to his family...and their circle of friends became just a little bit bigger.

Especially when Dahlia suggested that both their families meet.

Family was important to Dahlia and her sisters--something imparted upon them by their departed parents. After a series of miscarriages, Dahlia and Rowena’s parents finally succeeded in conceiving and carrying a pregnancy to term, but the delivery had almost killed the twins and their mother. Still wanting more children, their parents had adopted the orphaned Lily and Martina eleven years later when they were four and six respectively. 

They were a motley family to be sure, but they were a family nevertheless. Not once were Lily and Martina made to feel like outsiders because of their different ethnicities and backgrounds, but they were loved as though they were of the same blood.

Dahlia loved her all sisters to the moon and back, and she had wanted to show her youngest one that she supported her while at the same time showing Mikey’s family that she accepted them...as well as the budding relationship between Mikey and Martina. She had opened the home she and her sisters shared to the Hamato family--issuing an open invitation for them to come and go when they pleased…

Or needed a safe place to hide...something they had utilized frequently.

The house had been left to all four girls after the untimely deaths of their parents, and it was more than big enough to accommodate additional houseguests for however long. As they one by one became mated pairs, the girls’ bedrooms were more than large enough to comfortably house the couples, and were each in possession of their own bathrooms

This of course also meant that the proverbial cat was now out of the bag on that fateful night when it came to Mikey and Martina. After all, if the smell of sex did not tip his brothers off, then the fact that Mikey was incapable of lying to his brothers would provide all the proof they needed. The three remaining turtles--upon realizing that romantic love was not in fact out of their reach—had instinctively looked to Dahlia on the night of the big reveal...the three of them curious as to whether the leggy blonde’s acceptance would extend to taking one of them as a mate.

Mikey could hardly blame them...

He could hardly blame them for wanting what he had. After all, no matter how much they had declared otherwise over the years, they had all wanted it. 

It had been no true surprise to Mikey that Donnie had been the one to eventually win the lovely scholar’s heart. They had bonded over their mutual love of science and knowledge. It took a bit longer for their friendship to evolve into something more though, because Donatello kept overthinking everything he said and did--utterly terrified of being rejected in spite of the hints Dahlia had dropped. But he had not been…

Neither had Leo and Raph when they had met Lily and Rowena.

They had found love. Somehow...against all odds, Mikey and his brothers had found the love they had always craved one by one. Here they were an entire year later, they were still going strong as they lived side by side with their beloved mates.

“Just be sure to keep the deliciousness relegated to food,” Dahlia teased--pulling Mikey from his reverie as Donnie lowered her to her feet at last.

Mikey turned and raised an eyeridge. “I make no promises,” he said with a teasing smirk before vanishing into the kitchen.

“Ew,” Dahlia said with a chuckle while shaking her head. “No funny business in the kitchen!” she called out.

“I could say the same thing about the dining room table!” exclaimed a female voice behind Donnie and Dahlia. “Come on, ‘Lia...nosotros comemos allí!” Being of Cuban and Haitian descent, Spanish often found its way into her speech patterns. It was her way of incorporating where she came from into her new life. While she loved her new family, and was never once made to feel like an outsider, she nevertheless wanted to keep parts of her heritage alive even as she embraced the customs and traditions of her new family. She had been four when she had been adopted by the Dashwoods after her birth parents had been killed in a home invasion. The youngest of the Dashwood sisters, she, like Lily, had been allowed and even encouraged to embrace and explore the culture of her roots...and so she had. She made the effort to remain fluent in the language of her birth mother, and she learned how to cook the cuisine from both her Cuban and Haitian backgrounds. 

Sighing, Dahlia turned to face her baby sister. “Oh, unclench,” she said with a smile. “Estos huesos están limpios,” she rattled off in fluid Spanish. “It's not like I brought them fresh from the cemetery after a festive night of grave-digging,” she remarked while throwing in some jazz hands for good measure--her smile growing just a bit when she heard Donnie chuckle behind her.

“Oy, don't say things like that!” Martina said while gripping the hamesh she wore around her neck. Since Mason Dashwood was Protestant, and his wife, Pamela, was Jewish, all four daughters had been given the choice of being Bat Mitzvahed or not when they reached the age of twelve. Martina and Dahlia had chosen to do so, whereas Rowena and Lily had chosen to not. Having always been superstitious, Martina had opted to wear the Hand of Miriam instead of a Star of David, and she was never without it. “You know that anything involving the dead gives me the heebee jeebees!” She began edging her way around the edge of the room as she made her way to the kitchen. “I still don't know how you can even be in the same room with things like this.”

“It's actually quite--”

“Don't care!” Martina interjected. “Just make sure it's all gone by the time Mikey and I bring breakfast out. Rapido! Rapido!” She vanished into the kitchen.

As the sound of Shakira’s Try Everything filled the air, Dahlia knew Martina and Mikey would soon be well into the groove of cooking. Knowing there would be no point in trying to try and make her sister see her point, she simply sighed and absently touched the Star of David she wore around her neck. It had once belonged to her mother, and Dahlia had taken to wearing it after she died. “I get no respect,” she muttered only to be wrapped in Donnie's embrace from behind a mere moment later. 

“I respect you,” Donnie murmured. “I respect the hell out of you.” He churred softly as a subtle yet undeniable scent began permeating his senses and appealing to something deep and primal within him. Dahlia would be ovulating soon...which meant her sisters would be as well...

Which meant that Donnie and his brothers would become increasingly single-minded in the coming days. 

They would be unable to help themselves. It was a primal instinct they simply could not ignore. While it was unknown if the four turtles could successfully procreate with their human mates, Dahlia and her sisters were still on the Pill for their own various reasons, and had been even before the turtles had entered their lives. Rowena was on it in order to keep her regular, since her high-stress job had often resulted in her skipping a period for two or even three months at a time. For Dahlia, the pill was a way for her to keep her particularly debilitating periods manageable so she could actually be a functioning human being instead of hiding away in her room, curled up under the covers in the fetal position for five out of the seven days. For Martina and Lily, it was simply more of a precaution than anything else in order to prevent any unwanted pregnancies while they were still in school. The two younger Dashwoods were still attending the university, and both had their eyes set on starting their careers after graduation. Babies simply would not fit into those plans yet.

But no amount of contraception did anything to negate the smell of growing fertility.

Donnie's chur deepened as he nuzzled into Dahlia’s silken, gold tresses. “You smell incredible…” And he knew it would only get better and more potent in the coming days.

Dahlia smiled knowingly. “Is that so?” she asked innocently even as she shivered in response to Donnie nuzzling down the side of her neck.

“Mm, hmm…” Donnie churred with an underlying growl as he lightly nipped Dahlia’s pulse--his hands moving down to rest upon his mate’s hips.

“Noted,” Dahlia replied huskily as her eyes fluttered closed and a shiver raced up her spine. “Might have to...do something about it…”

“Yes, please…” Donnie entreated while resting his head against Dahlia’s and tightening his arms around her. “There's just something about being in bed with you when the weather is like this…”

Dahlia smiled and reached up with one hand to trace her fingers over the smooth yet pebbles skin of Donnie's cheek. “Because we both know that I won't be venturing outside on a day like this...neither will any baddies, which means there's nowhere for you and your brothers to be either. We can take our time and spend as much time as we want tangled up in one another…” She bit her bottom lip to stifle her whimper when Donnie slowly ran his tongue along the shell of her ear--an ache of longing settling firmly in her belly. She was half tempted to beg Donnie to take her right there on the table...but she knew better than that. She cleared her throat, and willed herself to regain her composure. “But first…” She turned in Donnie's arms so she was facing him. “Help me put _Jane_ Skellington away?” she asked while playfully batting her eyelashes as her cheeks remained flushed with arousal.

Donnie leaned down and smiled as he nuzzled Dahlia's nose--his own nose delighting in the scent of just how utterly aroused he had made his love in so short a time. “There's nothing I wouldn't do for you, Kimagure...my precious lifemate.” He kissed her tenderly. “Not a gosh darn thing. I'd cross oceans and climb mountains for you without a second thought.”

Dahlia stole a kiss before slowly drawing away with a smile--her heart fluttering. “Good to know.”

~*~*~

Lying on his side, with his head propped up on an elbow, Raphael smiled as gazed down at Rowena through half-lidded eyes as she slept. His free arm was draped over his beloved mate--holding her close as she slumbered. He loved how perfectly Rowena’s bottom fit into the curve of his plastron almost as much as he loved the way his love nestled her much smaller body into his so trustingly. He still could not believe she was his…

That Rowena had chosen him. 

Raphael was lucky, and he knew it. If he was being completely honest with himself, he could admit his complete and utter shock at being chosen by so beautiful a woman. He could understand how Mikey had landed a girl. After all...turtle or not, Mikey was Mikey--happy, friendly, disarming…

Everybody liked Mikey.

Was it any wonder that Mikey had been the first to win the heart of a beautiful woman? Hell, Raph could even understand Donnie landing Dahlia. After all, beneath all of his brainy brother's nerdy awkwardness beat the heart of a sweet and attentive romantic; and when coupled with the fact that Dahlia and Donnie were so intellectually compatible, it was inevitable that they would bond and fall in love with each other. Raph could even understand Leo winning the heart of Lily. Stick in the mud though his brother was, Leo was still kind, well-spoken, and never flew off the handle.

Then there was Raph…

Angry, hot-headed, gruff, and snarky Raph. He still had no idea how his sweet mate had seen past all his anger and outward aggression...but she had. Rowena had somehow seen past his blustering grumpiness; and as they became better acquainted over the weeks and months after being introduced, Raph found himself decidedly less angry at the world. A man of few words, he nevertheless sat and listened to Rowena whenever she talked...whether it was about her day, a book or article she had read...the subject matter never mattered to Raph. It did not even matter to him when he did not completely understand the subject matter.

He simply loved the sound of Rowena’s voice.

It calmed him.

Just like it had calmed him on the night of their first kiss. Both he and Leo were in a very bad way after an encounter with the Foot. Donnie and Mikey had managed to get Leo and Raph back into the safety of the lair after the battle, but it had not been enough. 

Donnie had needed help.

While Donnie had divided his attentions between his two eldest brothers in attempts to keep them alive, Mikey had called Martina who then called Rowena who had just been getting off of a double shift. The two sisters, along with April and Casey, met at a point close to the lair, and then ventured underground together. Rowena never once batted an eyelash at the sight of the blood, but instead flew right into action helping Donnie save his brothers--using the tools, antibiotics, and sedatives she had taken from the hospital upon hearing of the situation from her sister. Rowena had saved his life…

And her face had been the first Raph had seen when he awoke.

She had been sitting beside Raphael when he awoke, and she had been gazing down at him...while holding his hand in both of her much smaller ones. Raph still remembered the worry in Rowena's brown eyes, the gentle softness of her fingers, the way her ginger hair caught the light in the room...or the way Rowena had smiled at him when he slowly opened his eyes. Then he remembered what he had been thinking off before he had lost consciousness…

Rowena.

All he had been able to think of was that he would never see Rowena again. He would never again hear her voice. So upon opening his eyes and seeing the woman who would become his mate, Raph had not been able to help the smile from spreading over his lips any more than he had been able to stop his free hand from slowly reaching up to tenderly caress Rowena's cheek. 

Raph still remembered the way his heart had raced when Rowena leaned into his palm, and his smile grew as he remembered the way the ginger had shyly brushed a featherlight kiss against his palm. Then, with painstaking gentleness, Raph tentatively urged Rowena down towards him and shyly brushed his lips against hers--his heart thundering in his chest like a sledgehammer even as Rowena eagerly kissed him back. Nothing was the same after that night…

And Raph loved it!

He loved Rowena so much...so incredibly much. Forever calm and patient in every situation because of her career, Rowena provided Raphael with a sense of inner peace simply by being next to him. So long as Rowena was with him, Raph no longer flew off the handle as quickly as he used to. All Rowena had to do was smile at him, or touch his hand, and Raph felt his anger slip away. Rowena was his safe place, the beauty to his beast, his harbor in a storm…

His heiwa.

Raph nuzzled Rowena's shoulder and shivered as the faint scent of fertility wafted into his nose. To his credit, he did not attempt to initiate anything. He knew better than to do such a thing when his beloved was dead on her feet. Rowena worked tirelessly hard to help save the lives of people who were brought into the hospital battered, bleeding, and broken--victims who had been rescued too late. Her job was vastly important, and Raphael admired her deeply for everything she did. She deserved every minute of sleep granted to her, and Raph was more than happy to simply lie quietly beside Rowena and hold her.

It was one of the ways he conveyed his love.

Raph was not vocal like his brothers were when it came to expressing how he felt towards Rowena--how deeply he cared for her. Words were never really his thing, and whenever he tried to verbally express his love for Rowena, he always tripped over his words quite horribly. But he told her that he loved her in other ways...little ways. He was a man of action after all…he always had been. He carried Rowena to bed when she fell asleep on the couch, he massaged her feet when she took off her shoes after work, he would always let her have the last cookie or last bite of cake or ice cream, he would let her pick the movie she wanted to watch if she had come home from a particularly trying shift…

Little things to be sure, but no less significant.

“I love you, Heiwa…” he murmured while smoothing Rowena's ginger hair away from her delicate face. “Might not be all lovey-dovey like my brothers when it comes to showing it...or saying it, but...doesn't mean I don't cherish every moment I spend with you.” He kissed Rowena’s temple, and then her shoulder. “You're my life...my dream...” He shifted so that his head was now pillowed upon his arm so he could nuzzle into Rowena's hair. “...my everything.”

~*~*~

Kneeling at the chabudai in his room, Splinter calmly sipped his tea; and while he peacefully observed the young, Japanese woman sitting across from him, his dark eyes nevertheless glimmered in amusement as he watched her gaze down at the chessboard. While the woman’s lovely face was serene, the wizened rat nevertheless knew that her mind was rapidly going through all the possible moves she could make as well as the moves with which he would counter.

It was his custom to have a game of chess with Lily every morning while Leo engaged in his early morning meditation and practice sessions. It had been this way ever since he and his sons had moved into the Dashwood Mansion, and Splinter would have been lying if he said he did not look forward to these moments. He would of course still play a game with Leo, and even Dahlia when the mood struck either of them, but his games with Lily were never so sporadic.

“Anata no chichi wa anata ni yoku oshiete kuremashita,” Splinter said with a nod of approval as Lily made her move. He of course loved all four of the girls who had mated themselves to his sons, but Splinter had a special fondness for Lily. She reminded him of the life he had once had, and the life his sons would have had if they had not met their untimely ends all those centuries ago. He remembered only too well how Leonardo had looked in those days--how handsome a young man into which he had been growing. If Splinter closed his eyes, he could see Leonardo as a human...standing side by side with Lily and looking every bit the perfect match.

“Arigatō, Otōsan,” Lily replied with a smile as she delicately tucked her bobbed, ebony hair behind her ear and then reached for her own cup of tea to then inhale the earthy scent before taking a slow sip. “Chess was one of the hobbies he and I shared before his untimely passing. “Chess and sailing.” She had been a mere six years old when her biological parents had been killed in a horrific car accident in Tokyo. Miraculously, Lily had survived the ordeal; and two months later, she had been adopted by the Dashwoods.

She had been allowed to retain her culture and was trilingual in her native Japanese, English, as well as Spanish--all her sisters were. Shyer and more soft-spoken than her sisters, she preferred to observe life from behind the lenses of her many cameras. Her shyness did nothing to detract from her skills as a photographer though, and she was the best student in the university's department. It was her dream to eventually become a photographer for National Geographic once she graduated with her degree; but so far...her favorite subject matter was her family...both past and present.

Lily had loved taking pictures of her family while her parents were still alive--forever preserving the memories of the warmth and love that had filled their home. Now she loved capturing those same moments as she and her sisters built lives with the men they loved--forever preserving their happiness and love in copious candid shots. These photos she developed herself so there was no risk of them falling into the wrong hands; and while she could never share them with the world, they were nevertheless her pride and joy.

She looked over her shoulder when she heard the door to Splinter’s bedroom open, and Lily smiled when she saw Leo stick his head into the room. Her heart skipped a beat when her beloved smiled at her while stepping into the room only to then approach her and Splinter. No one else had ever made her heart behave in such a way.

“Who's winning?” Leo asked while kneeling beside Lily--leaning down to nuzzle her silken hair in greeting as she poured him a cup of tea. He of course could smell the beginning change in Lily’s scent, but he knew better than to draw attention to it in front of his father. He instead smiled in silent thanks while accepting the steaming cup carefully in his large, strong hand.

Leo enjoyed quiet moments like these...quiet moments before Mikey's rambunctious energy and nonstop talking filled the air. He had always enjoyed these calm and tranquil moments with his father, but now Leo could enjoy them with another as well. Lily...his Lily. His dream…

His yume.

The small woman seated beside him was everything Leo had ever dared to dream for despite the overwhelming evidence that he would never be blessed with such a living embodiment of perfection. Lily had an old soul, and was the perfect blending of old and new--reminding Leo of his past while representing his future.

They had bonded over their mutual Japanese heritage. They would write and exchange haikus, as well as work on origami together--hobbies that Leo had always practiced alone in secret for fear of his brothers’ teasing. As had the other three couples, they had started off as friends; for as much as Leonardo had wanted the relationship to be something more, he was not about to pressure Lily into it. He knew how challenging a relationship with him would be given the circumstances, but that did not mean that he did not nurture the hope.

But then, there was a change…

It was subtle...a mere choice of words in a haiku Lily had given to Leo. In fact, it was so subtle, that Leonardo had worried and fretted that he had read too much into it--that he was imagining what he wanted the line to mean. So, he made no mention of it, and instead chose to ignore it. But then, Lily gave him another haiku with yet another line that possessed a similar meaning...and Leo had been unable to stop himself from asking Lily if she had in fact meant what he thought she had meant.

Leo still remembered the way the blush had crept into Lily’s cheeks as she smiled shyly while nodding, and he still remembered the way his heart felt as though it had sprouted wings. How could he forget it when it was the day his own life had changed for the better?

Lily was infinitely kind and in possession of a truly beautiful heart and giving nature. Her laugh was truly lyrical, and the sound of it warmed Leonardo’s heart. Though reserved in nature, there was no doubt in Leo’s mind that his mate loved him--that they were rightly and truly connected. He could feel it every time Lily’s fingers brushed against his. He could see it in her beautiful brown eyes whenever their gazes met…

And he could feel it every time they made love.

They belonged together. 

“As of this moment, my son, no one,” Splinter replied with a small chuckle--gently pulling his son from his reverie. “Your lovely Lily is quite a skilled opponent,” he added while making his next move, only to stop and sniff the air as the unmistakable smell of breakfast began wafting into his room. Since his room was on the ground floor, the wizened rat always got a good whiff of any cooking or baking that was being done; and as disciplined as his mind was, Splinter always found himself unable to concentrate in the face of Mikey’s culinary skills when they were coupled with Martina’s.

His stomach growled.

Lily giggled softly before taking a sip of tea.

Leo masked his own chuckle by clearing his throat and then gulping his tea.

“Perhaps we should continue our game after breakfast,” Splinter suggested with a chuckle and a smirk before finishing off the last of the tea in his cup.

“Excellent idea, Sensei,” Leo replied while standing and then helping Lily to her feet.

Splinter smirked and chuckled softly while reaching for his cane and then rising to his feet. He glanced over his shoulder at the young couple as he began tapping his way to the door with a cheeky smile. “Yes, I have been known to have a few of those.”


	2. Chapter 2

“Fuck, it's fucking cold!” Raph growled as his teeth chattered. Standing on the rooftop with his brothers and Casey, the grumpy terrapin was decidedly more so. He hated being cold. He especially hated being cold and away from Rowena--the cold made all that much more potent by the noticeable absence of his mate.

His mate…

No matter how many times he lived this very real reality of his new life, Raph still had trouble believing it. He wanted to revel in it...revel in Rowena as much as he possibly could. Was it so strange that Raph wanted to spend every moment he could with her now that he had her? Besides...couples were supposed to snuggle on cold nights!

“Bah, you just wanna cuddle and snuggle Rowena,” Casey teased while making kissy faces.  
“Fuck yeah I wanna snuggle with my Ro,” Raph growled while palming Casey's face and pushing him away with deceptive care--ever aware of just how much stronger he was than his human friend. “It's winter. It's cold. I finally have a girl. I wanna fucking snuggle and cuddle her under a blanket, dammit!” Another fact Raphael had discovered about himself since he and Rowena had become a couple...he loved cuddling.

“Yeah...blanket cuddling and some hot chocolate,” Mikey remarked with a nod. 

“Winter is the optimal time for snuggling…” Donnie ventured carefully while glancing at Leo out of the corner of his eye. He wanted to be home as much as Raph did, but he knew better than to try and force Leonardo into cutting a patrol short before he was ready. “Maybe even a nice, hot bath…”

Raph on the other hand was not so subtle.

“C’mon, Leo,” Raph grumped. “Even you gotta see there's no point in patrolling tonight. Look around you,” he said while sweeping his arms wide. “No Foot, mutant, mugger, or Utrom is gonna be out on a night like this. It's colder than a witch’s titty!”

Both Mikey and Casey snorted and sniggered.

“Heh...he said ‘titty’,” Casey chuckled.

“Titty…” Mikey chortled before snorting again.

Donnie sighed and rolled his eyes. “Seriously? How old are you two?” 

Mikey and Casey both sobered before silently looking to the other. They managed to remain serious for all of a heartbeat after their gazes met before they were sniggering and snorting with barely contained laughter.

Groaning, Donnie palmed his face while giving his head a small shake. He looked over to Leo upon hearing a heavy sigh, and saw his blue-banded brother turn to face the others.

Leo pointed back and forth between Casey and Mikey. “You two, act like you've been there before,” he said simply. “Seriously.” He then looked to Raph. “And as for you…” He sighed, and his shoulders sagged just a bit. “Yeah, I suppose we can head back. Things are pretty quiet…” He looked to Donnie--not seeing Raph's victorious smirk. “And a hot bath sounds amazing right about now,” he added with a small chuckle. 

“Yeah...a hot bath with some hot chocolate,” Raph added.

“Lucky your girls each have bathtubs big enough to hold you guys,” Casey said as he fell into step with the others as they turned and stepped away from the edge of the roof.

“All four of them were involved in sports,” Donnie said. “With all the pulled muscles and sore limbs between them, it only made sense for their parents to install jacuzzi tubs in their bathrooms. “At least, that's what Dahlia said.” He gave a shrug of his shoulders. According to his mate, Rowena had gotten the first tub after the ballet injury that would eventually lead to the end of her future in dance, and then their parents had other tubs installed so that Dahlia and Martina especially would not have to keep using Rowena’s.

“Yeah...Martina said their parents were all about fairness,” Mikey said with a nod. “It was their way of not playing favorites between their daughters regardless of blood or adoption.”

“Yeah, well let’s get back so we can play favorites,” Raph grunted as he took off at a run towards the other side of the roof--leaping effortlessly across the space to the other building.

“Someone's eager,” Mikey teased loud enough for Raph to hear as he and the others gave chase--though Casey was admittedly a bit slower.

“Fuck you!” Raph called lightheartedly over his shoulder.

“Sorry, bro!” Mikey called back with a laugh. “You are so not my type!”

~*~*~

“Seriously, Dahlia? Again?”

Her humming of Place in the Choir interrupted, Dahlia blinked in surprise, but still managed to remain focused upon her task. “Hmm?” she asked simply without looking up from her multiple pages of copious notes--engrossed in the cross-referencing of her own with the notes that came with the bones she had been assembling the previous day before being forced to stop.

“Los huesos, hermana,” Martina clarified with an underlying whine. “Los huesos!” She stomped her foot and pointed to the now fully laid out skeleton on the dining table. “We literally talked about this exact same thing yesterday!”

Blowing a strand of blond hair off her face, Dahlia sighed heavily and raised her bespectacled gaze up from the many pages of notes in order to look to her baby sister--seeing April standing beside her. “This is the best place in the house for me to do stuff like this. These bones are old, and more importantly, they’re my responsibility. I’m not just going to lay them out on the floor where they could get stepped on and otherwise damaged by one of the many pairs of feet living in this house now.”

“What about the basement?” Martina demanded. “Isn't that where you used to do stuff like this? You know...away from the eyes of others?”

“The basement is now Donnie’s lab,” Dahlia replied simply. “Even if there was room for me to work down there, I'd rather not have human remains in such close proximity to volatile chemicals, and inventions that have a tendency to fizzle and explode during beta testing.”

“I can understand that,” April said with a small nod. “Makes sense to me,” she added while looking to Martina.

“Well...take the basement back,” Martina said desperately while fidgeting with her necklace.

“No way,” Dahlia said with a shake of her head. “The way I see it, all of Donnie's experiments and toys are what keep him and his brothers alive so that they can come back home to us after their patrols. He needs that space, so I'll just have to move my work elsewhere.”

“But...here?!” Martina asked with a whine as she pointed to the table. “At the place where we gather together as a family to eat?”

Dahlia sighed. “This isn't the only room in the house that can be used for eating, you know,” she said patiently. “We have a perfectly nice family room along with a perfectly functional living room. You know...the rooms with the two huge coffee tables? We're just going to be ordering pizza when the guys and Casey come back from patrol anyway...nothing fancy. No need to be all formal in our eating venue.” She blinked. “Which reminds me, you'd better get to ordering. Leo said it was going to be only a short patrol tonight since the temperature is so freakishly low.” She turned her attention back to her notes. “And don't forget to order those rolls the guys like so much.”

“Um...why exactly do you have bones in your house in the first place?” April asked while stepping into the room to get a better look at Dahlia’s work.

“Because she loves to torture me with terrifying things,” Martina retorted while crossing her arms over her chest.

“Oh, come on, Marti…” April chided with a smile at her friend over her shoulder. “Science isn't scary. It's not like your sister is planning to go all Doctor Frankenstein on us and reanimate these human remains,” she teased.

Dahlia raised an eyebrow. “You don't know what I do on my Saturday nights,” she retorted without missing a beat.

April raised a ginger eyebrow. “Oh, I think I can hazard a guess,” she said with a smirk. “About seven feet tall...fancies the color purple...total brainiac?”

Dahlia giggled and smiled as her cheeks turned the faintest shade of pink. “Okay, maybe you do know what I do,” she replied cheekily.

“Whatever,” Martina growled as her friend and sister giggled together. “I'm going to order dinner. You want to keep playing with dead things, go right ahead,” she said before turning and stomping out of the room.

Dahlia sighed. ”I'm not playing with dead things,” she called out. “I'm…” she sighed and gave a small shake of her head. “Oh, why do I bother?” she muttered under her breath while turning her attention back to the skeleton and her notes. “So, have you given anymore thought as to Casey’s invitation for you to move in with him here?” she asked amiably. 

April sighed. “Yeah...as much as I appreciate the message his request is sending, I just don't think I'm ready for that yet.”

“If you're worried about being a bother, you shouldn't be,” Dahlia assured. “We had no problem taking Casey in, and I know his room is big enough for the two of you...even with all his hockey gear,” she added with a chuckle.

April smiled. “It really was awesome of you four to open your home to Casey.”

“Considering his crappy home life, we couldn't very well turn our backs on him, now could we?”

“Still though, it's an awesome thing you did,” April said with her smile still in place. “All the same though, I think I'll stay in the dorms...for now in any case. I just don't want to rush into something like this. I mean...it's not like with you four gals and the guys, where you’re so obviously each other's soulmates.” She sighed. “I just want to be sure...you know? I really care about Casey, and I don't want to ruin anything.”

“Totally understandable,” Dahlia replied with a small nod. “Do what feels right to you,” she said before returning her focus to her notes.

“So...you never did answer me,” April said. 

“Hmm?” Dahlia asked absently before blinking and raising her gaze from the pages. “Oh! Right, sorry. These bones are from an unknown woman who died almost a hundred years ago. It's my job to catalog every detail and discrepancy I might find in the remains and cross-reference them so she can eventually be identified...hopefully.” She sighed softly. “That's the long term goal, in any case…”

“I wouldn't think that interns are allowed to take remains from the museum,” April remarked.

“Normally, not,” Dahlia admitted. “But when said intern happens to be the best in the program, the higher ups tend to look the other way.” She sheepishly averted her eyes. “Not to mention...the research lab is named after my father because of all the sizeable donations he made to the museum over the years.”

April chuckled. “I'm sure it's mostly the first part. Money or not, they're not going to just let you walk out willy-nilly with human remains unless they trusted you.” She glanced down at the skeleton and gazed at the bones silently for a few moments. “Wow...to think that this was once a living person…”

“I know,” Dahlia replied with a small nod. “When it comes down to it, underneath all the skin, organs, and everything else that makes us people...this is all we are.”

The sound of a camera clicking prompted both Dahlia and April to look towards the kitchen door where Lily was currently lurking. Even if the two women had not been so engrossed in their conversation, chances are they would not have noticed the quiet photographer creeping into the room. Since candid shots were her favorite, Lily was rather good at not being seen; and she had the patience to wait quietly for the perfect shot. After all, candid shots could hardly be classified as such if the subject matter was aware of being photographed.

“How long have you been there?” April asked bemusedly.

“Not long before you and Martina arrived,” Lily replied softly with a smile.

“And you got there without us seeing you, how?” April asked. “Leo been teaching you stuff?” she asked with a chuckle.

“There's another entrance to the kitchen in the hallway,” Dahlia reminded.

Lily nodded. “I originally wanted to get a shot of Dahlia at work so I could capture the juxtaposition between life and death, but I like the shot better with the two of you in it. It adds an extra dimension to the piece...almost like an age progression…”

“Okay, that wasn't creepy,” April remarked wryly even as she gave a small chuckle.

“Yeah, well...life can be both creepy and strange at any given moment,” Dahlia replied with a small sigh before nodding her head towards the door. “Now, would you two gals please get out of here so I can work?” she asked with a smile. “I want to get as much done as possible before the boys get back.”

“Yeah, sure,” April said with a nod before motioning for Lily to go with her. “Come along, Shutterbug. Let's go places,” she said with a grin as she turned and started for the door. Both girls smiled in greeting as they passed Splinter on their way out.

Dahlia put her notes down upon the table. “Oh, hello there,” she said with a smile as the rat tapped into the room. “Can I get you some tea?”

“Actually, I came to see what has gotten Martina so riled,” Splinter replied as he came to stand beside Dahlia. “I was meditating, and could sense her distress beating at me like a hammer.”

Dahlia sighed. “She doesn't like my ‘playing with the dead’,” she said while making air quotes with her hands. “I keep trying to tell her that what I do isn't ‘playing’, but she just won't listen. Anything that even remotely pertains to death terrifies her...ghosts, hauntings, zombies...you name it.” She sighed. “As far as she's concerned, I'm conducting hoodoo rituals with what I do,” she said while motioning to the bones.

“People react differently to death,” Splinter said with an understanding nod. “To some, it simply a natural part of life, while to some it is the frightening unknown they would rather avoid at all costs.” He fell silent for a few moments. “And for a rare few, it is simply an obstacle to overcome…”

Dahlia looked to Splinter and smiled--her eyes filling with awe. “You can say that again,” she replied. “Reincarnation has always been theorized by people, and held as a core belief in certain cultures and religions, but...there has never been any concrete evidence of it before…”

Splinter smiled gently. “It was not simply to my sons and myself to whom I was referring,” he remarked before gazing at Dahlia pointedly.

Dahlia blinked. “Me?” she asked confusedly while tucking a strand of golden hair behind her ear. “As far as I know, I don't have any past lives…”

“No, you do not,” Splinter replied with a small shake of his head. “But it is not to your life I was referring but rather the life of the woman lying upon your table...or rather, her death. Your work will serve to bring her true peace once you overcome the obstacle of her death.”

Dahlia nodded in understanding. “Yes,” she agreed. “That's the hope in any case. God willing, she can be identified and laid to rest...maybe even reunited with her family in some small way.”

“There is beauty in what you do, child,” Splinter assured softly. “It might be difficult for others to see it, but never for a moment doubt that it is in fact there.”

Dahlia smiled. “Thank you, Splinter. That really does mean a lot.” 

“You are welcome,” Splinter replied with a smile and a small nod before tapping off towards the kitchen. 

Alone again, Dahlia turned her attention back to her work. After a few moments, she turned her head towards the hall door upon hearing a familiar shuffling approaching, and she resisted the urge to giggle when Rowena zombie-shuffled into view wearing her fuzzy pajamas, pink bunny slippers, and sporting a strong case of bedhead. “And just what do you think you're doing out of bed, young lady?”

Rowena yawned and stretched while shuffling over to her twin. “Wanted to be awake when Raph came home,” she replied sleepily while draping her arms around Dahlia’s shoulders and leaning against her. “Besides…” She yawned again. “I was hungry.”

Dahlia chuckled. “Well, you're lucky on both counts. The boys should be back soon, and Martina's gone and ordered dinner.”

“Good...good…” Rowena yawned again before leaning her head against her twin’s and staring down at the bones in the table. “How goes it?” she asked simply.

“It goes,” Dahlia replied before looking up at the ceiling when the unmistakable sound of the turtles’ voices reached her ears. “Heyah, heyaaah, our boyfriends are back,” she said in a sing-song voice while grinning.

“Dork,” Rowena remarked fondly with a teasing smirk.

“Nerd,” Dahlia retorted while lightly nudging her twin with her hip after putting her notes down upon the table.

“So sayeth the nerd,” Rowena countered with a small shove before linking her arm through Dahlia’s and turning the both of them towards the door so they could leave the room.

Dahlia chuckled. “We're both nerds in our own way. Hardly surprising when you stop to consider dad,” she said with a sad smile. Here she was, five years after the death of her mother and father, and Dahlia still missed them horribly. “I mean, daddy could've just coasted through life like so many kids from old money. He didn't need to get his Doctorate in archeology and then teach at the university...not with all the inheritance, stocks, and trust funds that grandpa and grandma left him when they died...but he did it anyway because he loved knowledge, and he loved imparting it.”

“I know,” Rowena said with a smile. “You're just like him, you know...and not just because you look like him.”

Dahlia smiled. “Yeah, well...you are just like mom, so that balances us out perfectly,” she replied with a small chuckle. “It made us the perfect sister-parents to our sisters.” She nudged Rowena with her hip. “That makes you my sister-wife,” she added with teasing wink.

Rowena stared silently at her twin for several moments. “Don't be weird,” she said at last.

“Too late,” Dahlia retorted with another nudge of her hip.

“Too late for what?” Donnie asked as he came down the stairs with Raph.

“Too late for me to not be weird like Ro asked,” Dahlia replied while releasing her sister in favor of launching herself at her lover. She was all smiles as Donnie caught her and held her tightly while kissing her.

“Bah, babe...whatcha doing saying things like that?” Raph asked while drawing Rowena into his arms and lifting her so he could kiss her. “You gotta know Dahlia’s a lost cause by now,” he remarked teasingly against his mate’s lips before slowly lowering Rowena back to her feet.

“Lucky for me, I like weird,” Donnie churred with a wink and a smile before nuzzling into Dahlia’s hair.

“That's all that matters to me,” Dahlia sighed happily while smiling as her eyes drifted closed in contentment. “How was the patrol?”

“Boring and forever-taking,” Raph said with a heavy sigh. “Couldn't wait to get back here,” he added as his fingers brushed against Rowena's.

“We should get you and your brothers warmed up,” Rowena said while taking Raph’s hands in her own and raising them to her lips so she could blow on them. “You're chilled to the bone. We have got to come up with better clothing alternatives for you guys when the weather gets frigid.”

“Got time for a hot bath before dinner?” Mikey's voice rang out from one of the floors above as if on queue. “I am so friggan cold!”

“Not unless it's a quick one,” Martina's voice answered. “But don’t worry, papi…dinner will be here soon.”

Rowena looked to Dahlia and caught her eye as Donnie lowered her to the floor at last. “Hot drinks?”

“Hot drinks,” Dahlia agreed with a nod as she stepped away from her mate.

“Kitchen?” Rowena asked while motioning for her twin to follow her.

“Kitchen.”

Donnie chuckled as he watched the girls depart, and he smiled as Splinter tapped out into the corridor from the other kitchen door. “Nothing to report, Sensei. Crime took a night off because of the cold.”

“It is good to have you back home, my sons,” Splinter said before clearing his throat. “Perhaps, the two of you could ready the coffee table in the living room for tonight?”

Donnie blinked. “Dahlia claim the dining table?” he asked simply--already knowing the answer.

“Hai,” Splinter answered with a nod.

Donnie chuckled. “Will do, Sensei,” he said while turning and motioning for Raph to follow him. 

“Casey!” Raph called up the stairs as he followed Donnie. “You've got door duty! Keep an eye out for the pizza dude!”

“On it!”

Now alone, Splinter chuckled and gave a small shake of his head. “Kids…”

~*~*~

A couple hours later with a bellyful of pizza, Raph sighed contentedly as he relaxed in the hot, bubbling bath--his arms wrapped loosely around Rowena as she leaned back against him. A smile played over the terrapin’s lips, and his green eyes were half-lidded as he nuzzled into Rowena's hair. “This is nice...really nice…”

“I know…” Rowena murmured with a smile as she shivered in delight as Raph nuzzled his way down the side of her neck. “It reminds me of the night of our first time…”

Raph’s smile grew, and he chuckled softly. “Yeah…” He lightly nipped where Rowena's neck and shoulder met as he replayed the memory in his mind.

Rowena had just finished tending to him after a run-in with Hobb and his gang, and had run him a hot bath to help chase away the residual aches. It had started out as a playful splash fight--a way for Raph to ease his love’s worry. But then, before they knew it, Rowena had fallen into the tub with a squeak and a splash. Once the initial shock had passed, they both shared a laugh and a kiss.

One kiss had turned into many…

Many kisses had turned into heated making out...and within moments, both of them had removed every item of Rowena's soaking wet clothing one by one. It was the first time Raph had ever seen a naked woman...a real naked woman. It had been the first time he had ever had one pressed against him…

And that was when his confidence faltered.

While Raph’s bravado always wavered in Rowena's presence in favor of sincerity, it had crumbled away completely upon being suddenly faced with a woman who wanted him. Women in skin magazines and internet porn were one thing. Raph could jerk himself off in the privacy of his room without worrying about doing anything wrong. 

But that night had been different…

Rowena was different. 

Rowena was not some random woman there to arouse and get Raph off. She was not simply some woman to be used--a means to an end. Rowena was the love of Raphael’s life...his soulmate. Raph had wanted more than anything to please her, but he had no idea how to actually go about doing it. Internet porn did not exactly serve as a proper guide since all it focused on was the raw, primal act of rutting.

That had been the last thing Raph had wanted.

Even if he had not cared about the differences between porn and real life, Raph knew that he could not simply pin Rowena down and fuck her. Despite primal instincts that had been screaming at him to claim his female...Raphael had been utterly terrified of following through with the impulse to mate. After all, physically, Raph was much larger, heavier, and stronger than Rowena. What if he accidentally got too rough with her because he got lost in the moment?

Then there was the other thing…

Reproductively speaking, Raph and his brothers were not built the same way as human men. They were larger, and shaped a bit differently. What if he caused her internal damage? 

Raph would never have forgiven himself!

It had not taken long for Rowena to figure out what was bothering her terrapin, and so she had smiled and reassured him before guiding Raph through the different acts of foreplay. As the hot water bubbled around them and tickled their skin, Rowena's hands had gently guided his over her body so Raph could explore her erogenous zones--and so he had. Raphael had eagerly lavished attention upon those special spots with his hands and mouth, and it had helped put the hot-headed turtle more at ease. However, it was not until the sounds of Rowena's growing pleasure grew in volume and frequency, that Raphael’s confidence had swelled, and he had been unable to keep his throbbing length from emerging out from his tail.

Raph remembered how he had half-expected Rowena to end things at that moment, so when his beloved instead began stroking his erection, Raph was almost reduced to tears as bliss swelled within him. As he remembered how Rowena had kissed him while slowly impaling herself upon his manhood, Raph’s hand slowly slid down his mate’s smooth stomach so his fingers could tease and brush against her folds.

“We've sure come a long way since then, huh?” Raph growled softly into Rowena's ear as his finger began circling his mate’s sensitive nub. He smiled against Rowena's temple when her breath hitched in her throat as her back arched.

“Yes…” Rowena whispered as her hands moved to grip Raph’s legs--bracing herself as her hips began rocking against her beloved’s hand. “You don't get nervous anymore…” she managed to say before whimpering as Raph’s finger moved briefly down from her clit in order to teasingly brush against her opening before moving back up once more.

Raphael churred deeply as his arousal grew. “What can I say, babe?” he asked before nipping Rowena's ear as his free hand moved to Rowena's breast--his thumb slowly teasing and caressing her nipple. “I've got the best teacher in the world.”

Rowena's back arched, and she began digging her nails into Raphael's flesh. Her breath hitched in her throat, and her eyes fluttered closed as she whimpered wantonly. “I think it's safe to say that…” She gasped as Raphael's finger slipped into her--readying her for what was to come. “...the student has become the...master…”

Raph grinned and captured Rowena's lips in a deep kiss as his finger slowly pumped in and out of her--his thumb still lavishing attention upon her clit. “Master…” he mused huskily. “I like the sound of that.”

~*~*~

“So, how bad was Martina’s freak-out this time?” Donnie asked with a chuckle as he helped Dahlia put away the bones with painstaking care.

“About the same as usual,” Dahlia replied with a fond shake of her head. Having done everything she could for the remains at home in a non-scientific environment, the rest of her work would need to be conducted in the museum’s lab.

Donnie sighed and shook his head in disbelief as he worked. “I still don't get why she gets so freaked out. Seriously...there's no such thing as ghosts.”

Dahlia blinked and looked up at her mate. “Come again?”

“Ghosts aren't real,” Donnie said as his gaze met Dahlia’s. “Come on, sweetie...even you have to admit that.”

“No I don't,” Dahlia answered simply.

Donnie blinked and tilted his head to the side as he regarded his love. “Seriously? Dahlia, you're working towards your Doctorate. You're a scientist. Surely you can't believe that ghosts are real. There's no scientific proof that they are. It has nothing to do with my lack of whimsy, it's just the truth. It's science.”

“I believe that there are certain things in this world that simply can't be explained by science...not in the black and white way that we would want,” Dahlia replied. “Ghosts are one of those things.” At the disbelieving look upon her beloved’s face, Dahlia sighed. “For goodness sake, Donnie, your life is essentially a science fiction novel with all the mutants, robots, and aliens you fight on any given day...and by all scientific accounts, you shouldn’t be here right now...and neither should your family. Now, I’m not talking about the mutation part because let’s face it...science happens. I’m talking about the reincarnation part. There is no scientific proof that reincarnation happens...no documented proof found after multiple experiments. Reincarnation is something that can’t be scientifically proven, and yet...here you are.” 

Donnie stared at Dahlia silently for several moments before clearing his throat and resuming his work. “That’s different,” he said softly.

“How so?” Dahlia asked.

Donnie did not answer for several minutes, but simply worked in silence. Then, at length, he finally sighed and returned his gaze to Dahlia. “Because I don't see ghosts, but...when I close my eyes, I can feel the cold and unforgiving steel of the sword that took my head.”

Dahlia’s eyes widened, and the color began draining from her face. “Are you serious?”

Donnie sighed and hung his head before returning his gaze to his love’s. “There are nights when I'm back there...reliving that moment in my dreams. I can hear Raph raging as he struggles against his bonds, I can hear Mikey weeping and calling to our father...begging him to help us even though he knows that he can't get to us, and I hear Leo trying his best to soothe the three of us as one by one, a ninjato is pressed to the backs of our necks.” Donnie shivered and closed his eyes while clenching his hands into fists. “I see the anguish upon our father's face as he himself is overpowered, restrained and forced to watch us in our final moments. I hear him promising us that this isn't the end...and I hear the sound of blades cutting swiftly through the air as they're raised briefly from our necks moments before they…”

Donatello opened his eyes when he felt Dahlia's hands atop his own. Her blue eyes were wet with unshed tears, and her face was filled with sorrow. It was not until his mate raised her hands to cup his cheeks that Donnie realized that he himself was weeping, and he instinctively drew Dahlia into his embrace before burying his face in her hair and sobbing. “Those are the nights where I hug you all that much tighter...so you can anchor me to the present and remind me that what I'm seeing is in the past...and that it can't hurt me.”

“I understand,” Dahlia whispered.

“That's why I don't believe in ghosts,” Donnie said softly as his arms tightened around his beloved. “I never lingered...never haunted anything. I was simply just...gone. My brothers, father and I...we were all gone...until the day came when we suddenly weren't. Ghosts are allegedly the product of unresolved business or vengeance, right? Well...why didn't we become ghosts? Why didn't we make it our business to fucking haunt the Oroku line from that moment on? If anyone ever had a motive for vengeance, it would've been us. So...why didn't we linger?”

Dahlia tilted her tear-stained face up so she could meet Donnie's gaze. She smiled lovingly up at him and carefully adjusted his taped-up glasses. “Because then we wouldn't have met.” She tenderly brushed away Donnie's tears with her thumbs. “If you became ghosts, there wouldn't be any Rowena and Raph, Lily and Leo, Martina and Mikey...or you and me.”

Donatello smiled fondly and turned his head so he could kiss Dahlia's palms. “Only you could come up with that conclusion,” he murmured before brushing a kiss to his mate's forehead.

“Well...I _am_ your kimagure,” Dahlia replied with a smile as Donnie gently brushed away her tears. “I'm just doing my job.”

“I still don't believe in ghosts,” Donnie said while slowly lifting Dahlia in his arms--his tail giving a small but happy wag when his mate slid her arms around his neck. His eyes drifted closed when Dahlia’s fingers lovingly stroked and caressed the back of his neck, and he churred when their lips met. He continued kissing his beloved even as he turned to carry Dahlia out of the room and towards the stairs

“No one’s perfect,” Dahlia whispered against Donnie's lips moments before her mate kissed her again as he effortlessly began climbing the stairs--knowing full well that their journey would conclude upon reaching their bed.

Donnie smiled and gazed deeply into Dahlia's eyes as he navigated the stairs. “You are.”


	3. Chapter 3

_...A month later..._

“Hey, Doctor Dorkenstein!”

Donnie blinked when he felt a balled up piece of paper bounce against his forehead. “Huh?” He blinked again and looked up from his laptop before casting his gaze around to find Mikey's arm raised--the proof he needed to know that his chipper brother had been the one to throw the ball of paper. “What?”

“Figure this out for me,” Mikey whined while holding up a rubix cube.

Donnie blinked. “Seriously? A rubix cube? That’s what you interrupted me for?” He returned his attention to his screen. It was Saturday, and Dahlia had been called in unexpectedly to the museum, so Donatello had contented himself to occupying his time by tweaking and enforcing the house’s alarm system. “Go bother Martina.”

“She's in our room working on a project for one of her classes,” Mikey replied with a pout. “Not a single surface that isn't covered with stuff, so yeah...can't exactly hang out there.”

“Fine, how about Lily?” Donnie asked without looking up from his work.

“Doing yoga or something with Leo and Splinter,” Miley answered. “And Ro is sleeping, which means Raph is sleeping, which means I done taking my life into my own hands by sneaking in there to wake her. Besides...I'm not gonna wake her up for something like this.”

“But you have no problem bothering me with something so trivial, right?” Donnie asked wryly.

“What? Are you very, very busy today?” Mikey teased. “You got a lot of big stuff going on?”

“Well, actually I--” 

“C’mon,” Mikey whined. “Play with me!”

Donnie raised an eyeridge. “Seriously? How old are you?”

“Same age as you, duh,” Mikey replied with a roll of his eyes.

“Yeah...seriously having major doubts about that...again,” Donnie remarked wryly.

“Bully,” Mikey replied with a pout.

Chuckling, Donnie turned his head when he heard the telltale sound of keys in the door, and he closed his laptop with a smile as he readied to greet his love.

“Guys! Guys!” Dahlia cried excitedly as she burst into the house and closed the door behind her. “Where is everyone?”

“Mikey and me are in the living room, Kimagure,” Donnie called out as he stood from the recliner in which he had been working. His smile widened when the sound of Dahlia’s rushing footsteps reached his ears. “What's going on?” he asked as his mate hurriedly entered the room--her face aglow with excitement.

Dahlia launched herself at Donnie with a happy squeal and covered her lover's face with kisses when he caught her. “I've got amazing news!”

“Should I go get everyone?” Mikey asked with a chuckle as he rose from the couch.

“Yes!” Dahlia exclaimed. “Except for Ro...if she's still sleeping, let her be.”

“You got it,” the orange-banded turtle said before he darted from the room.

Alone now, Donnie claimed Dahlia’s lips a slow, deep kiss--his pleasured churrs answering his mate’s delighted sighs as she wrapped her legs around him. “You've got the most gorgeous smile,” he murmured against Dahlia’s lips with a smile of his own when the kiss ended. “It's contagious.” He stole a quick kiss before slowly lowering Dahlia to her feet. 

“Easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy when I’ve got so many things to be happy about...you included,” Dahlia replied with a smile while hugging Donnie’s arm. 

“Well, I'm glad I'm on your happy list,” Donnie churred with a loving smile.

Dahlia kissed Donnie’s bicep before resting her chin upon it so she could gaze up at him. “Am I on your happy list?” she asked with a playful lilt.

Donnie gazed down deeply into Dahlia’s eyes as his free hand gently tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Kimagure...you are my happy list,” he murmured.

Dahlia’s breath caught in her throat as her cheeks turned a delighted shade of pink. Smiling widely as a happy giggle escaped her lips, she let go of Donnie’s arm in favor of jumping up and wrapping her arms around his neck--knowing he would catch her. “I love you so much,” she murmured fervently before kissing him.

Donnie churred into the kiss and smiled against Dahlia’s lips when it ended. “I love you too,” he murmured before slowly lowering his mate to her feet when he heard multiple footsteps approaching.

“What's this I hear about news?” Martina asked from her place riding piggyback on Mikey’s shell.

“Mikey did amp things up a bit,” Leo said as he walked hand in hand with Lily.

“Spill your beans,” Lily said with a smile. “Inquiring minds want to know.”

“Well, I--” Dahlia began moments before she was cut off by Martina’s gasp.

“Estas embarazada?” Martina asked excitedly.

Lily squeaked and covered her mouth with her hands. She bounced on the balls of her feet as she waited for an answer.

Dahlia blinked and gave a small shake of her head. “What? No, I--”

“Are you sure?” Martina asked. “Because you are glow-to the-ing,” she added with a grin.

“I call dibs on planning the baby shower!” Lily exclaimed as her hand shot up into the air.

Dahlia balked. “Wait, I--”

“BABY SHOWER?!” Leo, Donnie, Splinter, and Mikey asked in unison.

“BABY SHOWER!” Lily and Martina exclaimed together before descending into wordless squeaks of excitement.

“Dude! Congrats, bro!” Miley cheered.

“I...I...wha…?” Donnie stammered as Leo and Mikey clapped him on the shoulder.

“Guys…” Dahlia attempted.

“Congratulations,” Leo said with a smile. “I honestly thought Raph would be the first if it was even possible.”

“I didn't even know you two were trying,” Lily said.

“Guys…?” Dahlia attempted again.

“Who cares?” Martina asked with her smile still in place. “BABY SHOWER!”

“I’M GOING TO BE AN AUNTIE!” Lily squealed.

“I AM NOT PREGNANT!” Dahlia shouted at last after climbing on top of a nearby ottoman in order to be heard amidst the chaos. She took a deep breath when everyone fell silent. “I'm not pregnant,” she repeated in a calmer voice. “I'm on the Pill, just like the rest of you,” she said while gesturing to her sisters upon seeing them pout. “Remember?”

“I was looking forward to being an auntie…” Lily remarked while leaning against Leo.

“The Pill is not a hundred percent effective and you know it,” Martina countered while sliding off Mikey’s shell at last. “I mean...what's to stop the pitter-patter of little feet?”

“Why don't you try and get pregnant then, if you want a baby in this house so badly?” Dahlia asked.

“I'm still in school, duh,” Martina replied.

“So am I,” Dahlia countered. “Double duh.”

“Yeah, but you're almost done,” Martina retorted. “Triple duh!”

Dahlia sighed heavily and pushed her glasses up so she could pinch the bridge of her nose. “Yahweh give me strength…” she muttered under her breath. “We're getting off the subject,” she said while returning her glasses to their proper place--catching sight of Leo lightly patting Donnie’s shoulder out of the corner of her eye.

“Forgive us, Shin'ainaru-kun e,” Splinter remarked gently as he tapped his way over to his recliner and sat comfortably. “What is your news?”

With order now restored along with her ability to think clearly, Dahlia all but vibrated with excitement, and she grinned widely from ear to ear. “I've been hand-picked to go on assignment to Japan to help identify a recent discovery of bodies in Aokigahara. Hand-picked! Do you realize what that means? It means all my hard work is paying off, and I can use my skills to help even more people.” 

Donnie smiled proudly as he gathered his mate up into his arms and held her close. “Congratulations, Kimagure,” he said before kissing her lips. “I'm so proud of you.”

“Thank you!” Dahlia replied before giggling and clinging to Donnie spun her around. “This can only mean good things for my internship! I'll bet that they're gearing up to declare me ready for my Doctorate as we speak! I'm almost there!”

“Wait, hang on...you're going where?” Leo asked.

“Aokigahara,” Dahlia repeated easily before sighing when Leo, Splinter, and Lily exchanged glances. “Enough of that now, if you please,” she chided gently.

“What?” Martina asked while looking back and forth before pouting in thought. “Aokigahara...why do I know that name?” she asked of no one in particular.

“You might know it by its more sinister name of Suicide Forest,” Donnie explained matter-of-factly. “It's the world’s second most popular place to commit suicide...after the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.”

“It's at the base of Mount Fuji,” Lily said. “Twelve miles of trees…”

“Growing out of hardened a s very porous lava,” Donnie added.

“And it's considered to be one of the most haunted places in the world,” Leo finished.

Splinter nodded slowly. “A place filled with such negative energy and despair would be home to many yurei.”

“If you believe in that sort of thing,” Donnie remarked with a roll of his eyes while crossing his lean yet sculpted arms over his plastron.

“Which I do,” Martina replied firmly before looking to Dahlia. “Don't go,” she entreated. “Por favor…!”

Dahlia sighed and approached her sister with a gentle smile. “Marti, I'll be fine,” she said while resting her hands upon Martina’s shoulders and giving them a reassuring squeeze. “Don't worry so much.”

“How can you say that?” Martina demanded. “And how can you let her go?!” she demanded of Donnie upon turning her panicked gaze to him.

“Because ghosts aren't real,” Donnie said patiently as Dahlia drew away from her sister.

“Yes, they are!” Martina exclaimed with a stamp of her foot as she clutched the hamsa she wore around her neck.

“Myuzu…” Mikey began gently as he wrapped an arm around Martina's shoulders. “C’mon, babe, relax…”

“No!” Martina exclaimed before looking to Dahlia--brown eyes wide with desperation. “Why do you have to go?! They can't make you! Tell them no!”

“I can't do that, Marti,” Dahlia said patiently.

“Why the hell not?!” Martina demanded. “You've seen Ju-on. Whether it's the remake or the original, the message is still the same...Japanese ghosts are mean. They're mean and they don't mess around!”

Dahlia sighed. “Marti…”

“No! You give me one good reason why you can't tell them no,” Martina demanded.

“Because I would be doing very important work,” Dahlia explained. “Teams go into that forest on a regular basis to recover whatever remains they can find, and those remains need identifying...but because there's so many, they're often backlogged. It's not uncommon for them to reach out to various universities and forensic departments around the world when they need help.” 

“No doubt the fact that you speak Japanese worked in your favor in putting you in their sights,” Lily said.

“Seikaku ni,” Dahlia replied fluidly with a smile before shrugging. “The fact that I'm a Doctoral Candidate only strengthened the odds on my favor.” 

“Why?” Leo asked curiously as he sat on the couch and wrapped an arm around Lily once she settled into his lap.

“Because she's cheaper than a certified professional,” Donnie answered after a moment of thought. “Right?” he asked after looking to Dahlia for confirmation.

“Right,” Dahlia replied with a nod before looking to the others. “You see, I've got enough experience to be able to do the job well with either minimal to no supervision, but I'm not experienced enough to be paid monetarily. I mean, I'll be given a small per diem for sundries and whatnot, but aside from that, I'm paid with experience.”

“Still not hearing why you can't just say ‘thanks, but no thanks’,” Martina said.

Dahlia sighed. “Because there's hundreds upon thousands of bodies lost in those woods,” she explained patiently. “That's a lot of people who have died sad and alone, and usually only around seventy of them are found within a year...that's a lot of bodies unaccounted for...a lot of people who haven't truly been laid to rest.” She tilted her head to the side and regarded her sister gently. “Now...how can someone as superstitious you not see the importance of bringing peace to those departed by identifying them and ensuring that they're given the proper burial rites?”

“There is great honor in that,” Leo said.

“Indeed, there is,” Splinter remarked. “Many departed souls are not so lucky to have such champions working to help them.”

“What about their families?” Mikey asked after clearing his throat.

“Providing that there's family to be found, the remains will be returned to them so that they can handle the burial rites,” Dahlia answered. “If there's no family to speak of, or...the family doesn't want the remains, then they're handed over to the state which then in turn handles the burial. Either way, peace is being brought to the departed.” She looked to Martina. “Now...isn't that reason enough to risk running into a few ghosts?”

Martina sighed and leaned into Mikey. “I suppose you have a point,” she muttered--clearly unhappy still. “Just...please be careful,” she begged.

Dahlia smiled. “I'll be fine, I promise. Scout’s honor,” she added while holding up her hand in a three-fingered salute. “And I was an actual Girl Scout...from Daisy all the way to Senior, so you know that promise means something.”

“I guess…” Martina replied.

Mikey kissed his mate’s cheek. “C’mon, babe...let's go get started on dinner. It'll be a good way to get your mind off things.”

Martina managed a small smile as Mikey began leading her away. “Okay.”

Once the pair was out of earshot, Splinter cleared his throat. “Dahlia? If I may offer a word of advice?”

Dahlia turned to face the aged rat. “Always,” she said with a smile as she crossed over to the recliner and knelt beside it. “What is it?” she asked while gazing up at Splinter.

“While Donatello is a skeptic in matters of the yurei, I am of the same mind as Martina. Please be careful, child. Yurei are born out of great rage and sorrow at the time of their deaths, and a place such as Aokigahara will be rife with such spirits...and their rage is indiscriminate when it comes to picking out their victims.”

Donnie sighed. “Sensei, come on. You can't really believe this. I mean, we were full of sorrow and rage when we were murdered, and we didn't come back as spirits...vengeful or otherwise.”

Splinter turned his gaze towards his genius son, and the tip of his tail twitched. “Because we had another purpose awaiting us when the time was right. We were not simply left lost and wandering...unable to move on because we were consumed by the rage and sorrow we felt at the time of our deaths.”

“It makes sense to me,” Leo said. “Perfect sense, actually.”

Donnie sighed again and rubbed his forehead. “Fine, believe what you guys want...no matter how backwards it is. I can't stop you.”

Dahlia sighed softly and patted Donnie's shoulder.

“When do you leave?” Lily asked.

“In three weeks,” Dahlia answered while leaning into Donnie when he drew her close. “Fortunately, my passport is still good, so I don't have to deal with the hassle of renewing it.” She sighed. “I will have to get some shots though, which I am not looking forward to doing…” She looked up at Donnie and grinned playfully. “Not all doctors have your bedside manner,” she said with an underlying purr.

“Good to know,” Donnie remarked with a lazy grin--his hazel eyes turning molten.

“Guys...remember you're not alone in this room. Please?” Leo entreated.

Lily giggled.

“Hey, cut me some slack,” Donnie retorted. “My girl’s leaving in three weeks for who knows how long.” He pouted.

“Then take her somewhere the two of you can be alone,” Leo replied pointedly.

Grinning, Donnie picked Dahlia up and tosses her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry--the sound of his mate’s giggles filling the air. “Don't mind if I do.”

And with that, they were gone.

Still giggling, Lily rose from Leo’s lap. “I’d better tell Marti and Mikey to keep a couple plates warm for them,” she said before turning and starting for the kitchen.

“Good idea,” Leo replied with a chuckle as he watched his beloved depart. Once she was out of sight, Leo turned his attention to his father. “Do you think Dahlia will be alright?”

Splinter sighed, and his whiskers twitched. “I wish I could say that I knew,” he replied softly. “All we can do is hope and pray that any yurei who might be lurking in those woods turn their attention elsewhere.”

Leo nodded and fell silent for several moments before speaking again. “Is it bad that I wish we could go with her...just to see Japan again? I know it's no longer our home. It hasn't been for...well, a long time, and I know that we can never go back to the way things were, but…” He sighed. “I don't know what I'm trying to say. It's just…we never really got to say goodbye to our home and our way of life. We never got any real closure.”

Splinter sighed and gave a small nod of understanding. “I know, my son. You and your brothers...your lives were over just as they were truly beginning, and that is a difficult weight to carry in this new life.” He offered Leo a smile. “But fortunately, it is not a weight you need to carry alone.”

Leo smiled, and his smile only grew when he heard laughter drifting out from the kitchen--his ears easily picking out the sound of Lily’s laugh from the rest. “Yeah...that's true enough.” He sighed softly. “Thank you, father,”

Splinter smiled and nodded. “You are welcome, my son.”


	4. Chapter 4

Towel draped over his shoulders, and his pebbly skin glistening with a sheen of sweat from his strenuous workout, Raphael carefully toed open the door to his and Rowena’s room and blinked in surprise when he found his woman not asleep, but sitting up in their bed watching a movie. He silently regarded her from the doorway for a few moments before speaking. “Ro? Heiwa, you okay?”

“Why wouldn't I be?” Rowena asked.

Ralph raised an eyeridge. “Well, you're chowing down on those animal crackers and Nutella like there's no tomorrow…”

“It's my guilty-pleasure snack,” Rowena replied. “You know that.”

“Yeah, well, you're also watching _Sleepless in Seattle_ ,” Raph added as he stepped into the room at last and gently kicked the door closed behind him.

“So? It's a good movie,” Rowena replied with a shrug.

“It's also a chick-flick,” Ralph replied as he tossed the towel into the hamper before crossing over to the bed and sitting on the edge. 

“So?” Rowena asked.

Ralph sighed. “You only watch chick-flicks when you're sick...or sad.” He raised an eyeridge again when Rowena looked at him with mild surprise. “What? I notice things.”

Rowena smiled softly--her brown eyes warm with love. “I know you do,” she replied before offering Raph a Nutella covered cookie.

“You’re upset about Dahlia, aren’t you?” Raph asked before closing his mouth over the proffered treat--his lips brushing over Rowena’s fingers.

Rowena sighed even as a shiver of delight coursed through her. “I can't help it,” she admitted while dunking another cookie into the jar of chocolate spread. She raised it to her lips but then lowered the cookie with a sigh. “She's leaving for the other side of the world.”

“Babe, she's gonna come back,” Raph soothed.

Rowena sighed. “I know, and I know that what I'm about to say might sound pathetically codependent, but...I've never _not_ had Dahlia around. She's my sister...my twin. We shared a uterus for nine months, and we've scarcely been apart since then, and in a matter of weeks…” She hung her head and then leaned into Raph when he pulled her gently against him. She sighed. “I'm going to miss her…”

“I know, Heiwa,” Raphael replied while nuzzling into Rowena’s hair. He sighed. “Look, I know I’m not the best at expressin’ myself, but...I know how you feel,” he offered softly. "I really do."

“Tell me,” Rowena entreated softly while nestling into Raph--her cookies and Nutella forgotten as even the sounds from the movie faded into the background.

Raph sighed again and rested his head against his mate’s. “Remember the lab fire April told ya about?” He waited until Rowena nodded. “Well, we got grabbed by the Foot by mistake while they were lookin’ for the mutagen, and wound up in the sewer after gettin’ dropped by accident along with the mutagen’. Splinter woke up to find this stray cat tryin’ to eat me.” 

“Old Hob?” Rowena asked.

Raph nodded. “Yeah, that one-eyed, bastard. Can ya guess how he has only one eye now?” he asked cheekily before sighing. “Anyway, the two of them fought, Splinter kicked that cat’s ass ‘cause even as a normal rat, he was a badass…” 

“He was protecting his son,” Rowena murmured. “The way a mother can find the strength to lift a car off her child, so too did your father…a normal-sized rat at the time, take on a cat that was more than double his size in order to protect his son.” She kissed Raph’s shoulder. “In his mind, he had just gotten the four of you back after all those years, and he was not about to lose the four of you again.”

The corners of Raph’s mouth turned up into a small smirk, and he pulled Rowena onto his lap--his smile growing when his mate’s hand curled over the top edge of his plastron. “Well, after all that, the Foot came lookin’ for us...Splinter managed to get my brothers to safety, but I had gotten lost in the shuffle…” He sighed. “Long story short, I woke up after bein’ mutated, and I was alone...without any memories of myself or my family. For fifteen months, I was alone...just trying to make sense of the fucked up shitstorm of my life. That’s actually when I met Casey, but even with his friendship...I knew something was missing.” He tenderly kissed the top of Rowena’s head. “Didn’t have a fucking clue as to what it was that was missing, but I still knew…’cause it was like this big hole right here,” he said while tapping the area of his plastron that covered his heart.”

“You felt complete once you had your family back?” Rowena asked knowingly.

Raph nodded wordlessly before his eyes drifted closed in response to Rowena tilting her head up and kissing his jaw. His arms tightened around her. No matter how small or how brief, he cherished every kiss and touch his mate bestowed upon him. He never had to be reminded of just how lucky he was, and so he opened his eyes and turned his head so he could gaze down at his love. “Might not be the same as your situation, but...I do know how it feels to be without someone important to you.”

Rowena smiled softly and reached up to cup Raph’s cheek. “It helps...knowing that you can empathize with me, I mean.” 

“I might not be the best at talkin’ things through, but…that doesn’t mean I can’t listen,” Raph said awkwardly as he worked to find the best words for getting his point across. “You feel sad while Dahlia is away…you can talk to me about it, is what I’m sayin’. I might not know the best thing to say, but that doesn’t mean you can’t talk to me.”

Rowena’s smile grew, and her thumb lightly brushed over her beloved’s pebbly-smooth skin. “Thank you,” she whispered before brushing a soft kiss to Raph’s lips. “I can take comfort in the fact that even though Dahlia will be gone, I won’t be alone.” Her smile grew a fraction of an inch. “I’ll have my sisters, my brothers, my father...and you.” She leaned up and pressed her lips to Raph’s yet again--her arms mow moving to wrap around her terrapin’s neck. “I love you, Raph,” she whispered once their lips parted. “My sweet grump…”

Raph smiled and churred wordlessly as he held Rowena securely against him with one arm--his free hand gently cradling the back of his mate’s head. “I love you too, Ro.” He kissed her again. “Heiwa…” he murmured before stealing another kiss only to then rest his forehead against hers. “Gonna take a shower,” he said before grinning cheekily. “Wanna join me?”

Rowena’s smile grew, and she playfully flicked the tails of Raph’s bandana. “How else are you going to clean all those hard to reach spots?” she asked cheekily with a wink.

Raphael growled softly and smoothly rose to his feet with Rowena still in his arms. “Naughty, naughty nurse…” he murmured with a grin as he strode for the bathroom.

Rowena grinned and nipped Raph’s jaw. “Only for you.” 

~*~*~

Dahlia kept her breathing even as she ran at a steady pace upon the treadmill. It was situated at the far end of the attic so it was out of the way of the larger space that served as the turtles’ training dojo--thereby allowing her to get a run in without getting underfoot. While she was no longer on any track team like she had been all through high school, Dahlia nevertheless kept up with the training. After all the time and effort she had put into becoming the star of her high school track team, it seemed a waste to her to simply give it all up, so she kept it up. It was an easy way for her to burn the calories she consumed during her less than stellar eating habits when she was sucked into a project or her studies, and it ensured that her endurance stayed strong.

Something that particularly came in handy with her amorous mate.

Donnie…

If Dahlia was being completely honest, there was also a somewhat ulterior motive to her moving the treadmill up from its original spot in the basement. While the move had allowed Donatello more room for his lab and inventions, it also allowed Dahlia to watch Donnie whenever he and his brothers happened to be training at the same time she felt the need to work off residual energy. All four brothers were truly impressive sights to behold when they trained, but the sight of the studious and intellectual Donnie displaying his speed and agility never ceased to stir something deep within Dahlia. The sight of his long, lean muscles bunching and flexing as he sparred with his bulkier brothers--proving that he was physically capable of protecting her even though he lacked the sheer muscle mass of Raph, Leo, or even Mikey--always caused an almost primal ache to form within her.

But that was not the case in this moment. 

Knowing that Donnie was in his lab, Dahlia had come up to the attic just as Raph was leaving after doing reps with his weights. Her mind had been a muddle of various thoughts that she could not for the life of her sort through as she went over the checklists she had been making for her upcoming trip, and there was a ball of anxiety building within her that no amount of breathing exercises or cups of herbal tea could quell. The one tried and true remedy that had always helped her during moments like this was running, so she had changed into her workout clothes and hurried up to the attic--iPod in hand.

Postmodern Jukebox floating into her ears by way of her earbuds, Dahlia had been running for thirty minutes now. As was her practice, she would increase or decrease her speed depending upon the tempo of the song that happened to be playing, which always resulted in a good and challenging workout; however, she was so entirely focused on her task that she did not notice Donnie come to stand at the top of the stairs and simply watch her.

Donatello loved watching Dahlia run. The graceful fluidity of her movements as her long limbs cut through the air like butter and propelled her forward was truly a thing of beauty that brought to mind images of a gazelle or even a cheetah racing and leaping through the Savannah. Then there was the fact that her creamy skin was flushed and glowing with a sheen of perspiration, and her natural scent was heightened and made that much more palpable by the endorphins and sweat.

Simply put, Dahlia looked amazing...and smelled even better.

Donnie could not help but wish that he had been able to watch his mate compete in the various meets and tournaments. He had seen the medals Dahlia had won...there were quite a few. Mr. and Mrs. Dashwood had been proud of all their daughters, and made sure that all their awards were prominently displayed for all to see. Lily’s medals and for swimming and chess, Martina’s trophies for lacrosse...the large case in the living room was filled with evidence of the talents of the Dashwood sisters, but it was Dahlia’s medals and trophies that always filled Donatello with pride.

“Mine…” he whispered with an underlying churr as he watched Dahlia with an adoring smile. However, whatever arousal that was building within him was short-lived and soon replaced with a familiar sense of anxiety as he remembered that his beloved would soon be leaving…leaving New York…

Leaving him. 

Having always prided himself on his logic and ability to compartmentalize his emotions so he could function in even the most stressful of situations, Donatello found himself struggling to do so in the face of Dahlia’s looming departure. That was not to say that Donnie was not proud of his mate and excited for what her upcoming assignment would mean for her. Far from it! Donatello could not have been prouder of Dahlia, and he knew that this was simply something she had to do; however, the reality of being without her for a prolonged period of time was beginning to weigh on him.

Since becoming a couple, the two of them had scarcely been apart. Donnie’s brothers were the same way with their own mates--all four of them remembering too well how it had felt to believe they would live out their lives alone. They had all gotten used to falling asleep with their loves in their arms and waking up with them still there...to sharing meals with them, and passing the time with them in various ways. Now, Donatello would be separated from his beloved by oceans and massive land masses, and already his heart began to ache.

Donnie rubbed the area of his plastron that covered his heart, and moved from the top step at last to then cross over to the treadmill. Seeing that Dahlia was plugged into her music, he new that she was in the zone, and so Donnie did not attempt to say anything; rather, he came to stand in front of the treadmill and simply waited for his beloved to become aware of his presence.

He did not have long to wait.

Vaguely aware of something moving out of her peripheral vision, Dahlia began to slowly come out of her personal running zone. She blinked once...twice...then three times in rapid succession before giving her head a small shake. Seeing Donnie standing in front of her once she had returned to reality, Dahlia smiled widely and turned off her music while slowing her pace. “Hey, you,” she greeted affectionately in a breathless tone while pulling out her earbuds. “How goes it?”

“It goes,” Donnie said before sighing and moving to stand beside the treadmill only to sweep Dahlia up into his arms and hold her tight while burying his face in the crook of her neck. He deeply breathed in her scent and churred deeply--his arms tightening around her. He could feel his love’s pulse racing in the aftermath of her run, but there was also the tremor of excitement.

Dahlia smiled and sighed in contentment even as shivers of delight raced through her. “Hello there...” she murmured with a small giggle before kissing Donnie’s cheek. When her love tightened his arms around her yet again, Dahlia nuzzled his shoulder. “You okay?”

“Yes...no...yes...maybe…” Donnie sighed heavily and loosened his grip a bit. “I guess it’s just finally sinking in that you’ll be leaving soon,” he explained. “I can still be proud of you and yet hate that you’re leaving, right?” he asked sheepishly.

Dahlia smiled and kissed Donnie’s shoulder while stroking the skin on the back of his neck. “Of course you can,” she replied.

“Doesn’t make me an unsupportive misogynist?” Donnie asked worriedly. 

“Not even a little bit,” Dahlia replied firmly before pushing away from Donnie enough so she could gaze up into his eyes. “There’s nothing wrong with missing the one you love,” she murmured before sighing softly. “Lord knows that my own heart is already aching at the prospect of leaving you behind.”

Donnie raised both eyeridges. “Really?” he asked with obvious surprise.

“Of course,” Dahlia affirmed with a nod before tilting her head to the side in silent question before realization dawned upon her face as she moved her hands to cup her terrapin’s cheeks. “Donatello...my wibbly-wobbly, timey-whimey man, did you honestly think that I’m not experiencing my own set of reservations about this trip? You did, didn’t you?” she asked gently before sighing and then brushing a tender kiss to her beloved’s green lips. “Oh, Donnie...I love you with every ounce of my soul. When I leave for Japan, it will hurt me...it already does. You’re my soulmate...my lifemate, and I want more than anything to be able to share every aspect and experience of my life with you. It’s killing me that I can’t take you with me when I leave…” 

“I...I had no idea,” Donnie whispered in surprise.

Dahlia smiled ruefully. “Occupational hazard, I guess. When Ro and I had to take over for our parents and raise Marti and Lily, we had to learn how to put on a brave face...how to give off the impression that everything was alright.” She sighed softly. “I guess I still do it...never really noticed it until now. I mean, I know that Ro does it because she has to in her line of work, but I guess I just never broke the habit…” She was rambling now, but her words were cut off when Donnie captured her lips in a slow, searching kiss.

“I love you so very deeply,” Donnie churred as his arms tightened around Dahlia. “Kimagure...I’ll never stop missing you while you’re gone, but...knowing that you’ll be missing me just as much as I’ll be missing you will make the pain of your absence easier to bear.” He shifted Dahlia in his arms so he now carried her like a bride as he started for the stairs. He rested his head against hers as she nestled into him.

“We should make the most of the time we have left,” Dahlia murmured while nuzzling Donnie’s neck as her mate descended the stairs. She loved the earthy muskiness of his scent, and wished she could bottle it up and take it with her.

Donnie felt his tail twitch then begin to stiffen with need. “I couldn’t agree more,” he replied with an underlying growl. “Bath?” he asked while starting in the direction of their bedroom once he reached the bottom of the attic stairs.

“Afterwards,” Dahlia purred before lightly nipping Donnie’s pulse with her little teeth. “Then maybe during…” The amused giggle that bubbled up from her lips in response to her mate’s groan of arousal was cut short her lips were claimed hungrily. She whimpered with want as moisture pooled between her legs--knowing by the deepening churr rumbling in Donnie’s chest that he smelled it.

Meeting Dahlia’s gaze once their lips parted, Donnie’s gaze never once wavered as he stepped into their room and kicked the door closed behind them, and he smiled when Dahlia shivered in response to the raw need she saw in his normally calculating eyes. He could smell how much his mate wanted him, and he simply could not wait to throw her onto their bed so he could bury himself between her legs--first with his tongue, and then with his length. “I love the way you think.”

**Author's Note:**

> Enjoy my fanfiction? Imagine how much more you'll love my ORIGINAL fiction! Check out my website link on my profile page to learn more about my published works! <3


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